Electrolytic cell



H. I. ALLEN.

ELECTROLYTIC CELL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB- 5. 191a.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

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ELECTROLYTIC CELL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5. 1918.

1,355,116. Patented 001. 12,1920.

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NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

HERBERT I. ALLEN, 0F PORTLAND, MAINE, ASSIGNOR TO ELECTRON CHEMICAL COMPANY, OF POR'ILANZD, MAINE,

A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

ELECTROLYTIC CELL.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

Application filed February 5, 1918, Serial N0. 215,525.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT I. ALLEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Portland, in the county of Cumberland and State of Maine, have invented new and useful Improvements in Electrolytic Cells, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has relation to electrolytic cells, ysis of an aqueous solution of sodium chlorid for the production of chlorin, hydrogen and caustic soda. The invention consists in certain improvements in the cells of the character referred to which are illustrated upon the drawings and described in the following specification.

Referring to the drawings,

Figure 1 represents the complete cell in side elevation. v

Fig. 2 illustrates the same in plan view.

Fig. 3 illustrates a plan view of a portion of the cell with the cover removed. p

Fig. 4 illustrates an end view of two cells as they are electrically connected in series.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the construction of the cell body and shows a portion of the cathode frame.

'Fig. 6 represents a vertical cross-section through the cell.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing an anode, a portion of a cathode and a portion of the cathode frame.

Fig. 8 represents a longitudinal vertical .section through the end of the cell and shows the feeding well.

Fig. 9 represents an enlarged transverse section through the top of the cell, and shows the cover and the asbestos packing and cement which are used to render the top portion of the cell gas-tight.

Fig. 10 illustrates one of the cover sections.

The cell comprises a body, standards or supports upon which the body rests :and from which it is insulated, diaphragms placed on the opposite sides of the cell body, cathodes outside of the diaphragm, cathode chambers outside of the cathodes and comprising in each case a rectangular frame and an outer plate, and anodes arranged within the cell body with their faces confronting the diaphragms and cathodes.

The supports for the cell may be formed of any suitable material, but, as illustrated,

they comprise upright tile cement-filled pipe such as are employed in the electrol-- sections 10, with their lower flanged ends resting upon the floor. I may, however, use suitable standards formed of cast or molded cement if desired. Upon the upper ends of the supports is placed a flat plate or slab 11 of insulating material. Preferably it consists of aslab of concrete, such as Portland or other cement mixture, which is coated and more or less impregnated with asphaltum of other electrically non-conducting materia The sides and ends of this slab overlap the standards so that any drip will not flowdown the sides of the standards and ground the circuit. The cell body is also preferably formed of reinforced concrete cast into shape. This cell body is indicatedas a whole at 12, and in side elevation it is substantially rectangular, being provided with a laterally extending base portion 13 so that it may rest upon and be supported by the slab 11. The cell body comprises in addition end portions 14, 15, and the upper and lower side walls 16, 17, leaving rectangular openings in the sides of the cell as shown in Flg.

5. The upper side walls 16, 16, are connected by integral cross ribs or braces 18, and the bottom of the cell is provided with parallel grooves 19, 19. In one end of the cell there is formed a well 20 which is connected by a port 21 with the interior or anode compartment in the body, and connected with the well there is a gage glass 22. The brine is delivered to the well 20 from 'a suitable source of supply from which the brine is drawn by a pipe 23 leading to a float valve indicated as a whole at 24 and having a float 25 dependent into the well. By this float valve construction, the level of the brine in the cell may be kept constant. The interior of the cell body constitutes an anode compartment, the open sides of the cell body being closed by diaphragms 26, 26. These diaphragms consist of one or more layers of asbestos paper or cloth, or both, the mar- I neither vertical nor horizontal, being preferably at an angle of 45 to the horizontal as illustrated in Fig. 7. The margins of each cathode plate are imperforate, the slots being within a space no greater in area or space than the openings in the sides of the cell body. The cathodes and the diaphragms are firmly clamped against the sides of the cell body by cathode frames 30. Each of these frames is rectangular in side elevation, and each consists of a metal channel bar bent into rectangular form with the ends united by welding, brazing or the like. Against the outer faces of these cathode frames are secured metal plates 31, 31, to constitute, with said frames, cathode chambers 32. The said plates 31 are clamped to the frames by clamping bars 33 through whichscrews 34 are passed into the frames. The frames with the plates 31' are remov-' able to permit the detachment of the cathodes and the diaphragms in order that the diaphragms may from time to time be replaced as they become clogged or Worn.

The frames are held in place by pairs of vertical clamping bars 35, 35. Each pair of bars is placed with its thin edges against the frame and the bars of each pair are connected by spacer bolts 36, 37. The ends of the clamping bars straddle screw bars, 38, 39. The bolts 38 are introduced through apertures formed at spaced intervals in the upper part of the cell body, said apertures passing through the connecting ribs 18.

he bolts project some distance beyond the upper sides of the cell body. The bolts 39 are passed through apertures in the lower part of the cell in a horizontal plane below the openings in the sides thereof, as shown in Fig. 6, and they are so located that the cathode frames may rest thereon as shown 1 in Fig. 6. 'Handle nuts 40 are screwed on ends of said bars.

the projecting ends of the screw bars so as to force the clamp bars toward the cell body and firmly clamp the cathode frames, the cathodes and the diaphragms againstthe parallel side faces of the cell body. It will be observed that the spacer bolts 37 are nearer the lower ends of the clamping bars than the spacer bolts 36 are near the upper This is in order that the clamping bars, when the. handle nuts are loosened, may be lifted vertically far enough to disengage the lower ends of the clampingv bars from the screws 39, after which the said clampingbars may be swung laterally and then moved downwardly so as to discharge them from the bolts 38, all without the necessity of unscrewing the handle nuts completely from the bolts. This is an advantage because it prevents the misplacement and loss of .the nuts which are liable to, occur when the nuts removed from the bolts during the process of renewing the diaphragms.

are entirely which are formed by the diaphragm and cathodes, are placed the anodes. These anodes may be formed in any suitable way. I preferably employ Acheson graphite plates 42, 42, which are spaced apart and pinned by graphite pins 43 to intervening blocks 44. Carbon rods 45 with tapered lower ends are inserted in tapered apertures in the blocks 44, said rods projecting upwardly to a point considerably above the top of the cell. A sleeve 46 of glass, china or other like substance, which is not affected by chlorine, is placed on each rod. and rests upon the associated block 44. Each anode rests at its ends upon cross bars-47, which in turn rest each cross bar is rabbeted at its ends to re-- ceive the anode and hold it in place. The carbon rods 45 extend upwardly between the cross ribs 18 in the upper part of the cell,

which, as previously stated, are cast integrally with the sides 16, 16. There are sufliv cient aiiodes utilized to extend from one end of the cell to the other, and the ends of the anodes may be either contiguous or they may be separated as desired. They are elevated above the bottom of the cell by the glass cross bars 47, and their faces are close to the diaphragms so as to reduce the length of the path which the current must follow in passing from the anode to the cathode through the electrolyte. The upper edges of the anodes are some little distance below the side walls, as shown in Fig. 6, whereasthe glass sleeves 46 project above the normal level of the electrolyte. By virtue of this construction, the circulation of the electrolyte takes place, and the carbon rods are protected against electrolytic wear and mechanical wear due to crystals and suspended matter in the electrolyte. The inner faces of the side walls and the end walls of the body flare upwardly and outwardly as shown in Fig. 9, there being at the lower ends of theflaring portions, shoulders 50. A cover for the cell is formed in sections, of which one is indicated at 51 in F ig. 10, and these sections rest upon the shoulders 50. Each section is made ofi cast concrete or of earthenware or tile as may be desired, and each section extends from one of the carbon rods to the next adjacent one. Each end of each section is formed with a semi-cylindrical recess 52 to receive one-half of each such rod. To make the cover gas-tight, a body of suitable material, such as asbestos packing, cement, paraflin, wax or the like, is placed upon the sections of the top of the cover as indicated at 53 in Fig. 9. In this way I prevent any leakage of chlorin from the interior of the cell. At one end of the cell, a. gas main 54 is luted to the cover to conduct away the chlorin.

For conducting away the hydrogen which is evolved in the cathode chambers, there are apertures 55 through the ends of the cathode frames with which may be connected pipes leading to a gas-storage tank. The efliuent through the diaphragm, including the caustic soda and the non-decomposed brine, are conducted away from the cathode chambers by small pipes 56 leading from ports 57, located close to the bottoms of said chambers as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 6. The effluent from these pipes is caught by a trough 60, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Any liquid which may escape downwardly past the diaphragms is caught in grooves 61 formed in the base flange of the cell body, and is conducted thereby to the end of the cell and delivered through a pipe 63 to the trough 60.

The electrical connections com rise ta pered bus bars 70of copper whic are secured upon the top of the cathode frames. The thicker ends of said bus bars project beyond the end of the cell body and they are connected with a conductor 71 leading to an anode bus bar 7 2 on the next adjacent cell. as indicated in Fig. 4. s The bus bar 72 is elevated above the cell body and is held by insulators 74, 74, each pair of which is secured to a loop 7 5 held by standard 76 secured to the side of the cell body. There may be two of these standards 76, as shown in Fig. 1, the lower end of each being apertured to receive one of the bolts 38 upon which there is a nut 77 which clamps the standard against the side of the cell. From the bar 72, gooseneck conductors 78 extend upwardly, their downwardly turned endsextending into mercury cups formed in the upper ends of thecarbon bars 45 so as to insure a good electrical connection therewith. It will be understood'that, in a battery of cells, the cells are connected in series, the cathodes of one cell being connected with the anodes of the next adjacent cell.

In operation, the anode compartment is filled with the electrolyte until the level of the latter is just-below the upper ends of the glass sleeves 46, and the float 25 of the float valve is adjusted to insure the of the electrolyte at this level. The electric current of the desired voltage and amperage is then turned on with the result that the electrolyte is decomposed with the evolution of chlorin at the anodes, the evolution of hydrogen in the cathode chamber and the formation of caustic soda. The percolation of the electrolyte through the diaphragms goes on continuously, and the caustic soda is formed, of course, outside of the diaphragm, is held more or less in the apertures and interstices in the cathode, and flows down the cathode to the lower part of the chamber, whence it flows through the ports 57 into the trough 60. The commingled brine and caustic soda solution are subsequently evaporated and concentrated, and the salt is re moved, leaving a substantially pure caustic soda.

In order that the electrolyte in the cells may be tested from time to time, a tube 80 extends downwardly through the cover to a point below the electrolyte so that samples of the electrolyte may be taken from time to time or the temperature tested or other tests made as may be required. This tube is shown in plan view in Fig. 2.

What I claim is 1. An electrolytic cell consisting of a cell body having a base, end walls, upper side walls, and an open top; a cover formed in sections and closing said top, an electrode within the chamber, and carbon conductors projecting upwardly from the anode and passing through apertures formed at .the ends of the cover sections, substantially as described.

2. An electrolytic cell comprising a cell body with open sides, diaphragms closing the openings inthe sides, and cathodes outside-of said diaphragms in combination with anodes arranged within the cell body, ver tical conductors extending upwardly from the anodes, and sleeves of non-conducting material surrounding the conductors below the level of the electrolyte to prevent mechanical wear thereof.

3. In an electrolytic cell, a body having a bottom portion provided with one or more longitudinal grooves, and also having open sides, a diaphragm and a cathode on each side of the body, bridging the opening therein, a hollow anode within said body with its faces confronting the inner faces of the diaphragm, and insulating cross bars engaged with and supporting the anode and having depending projections extending into said groove or grooves.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

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